Va. gets more time to rebut study on moving ships to Florida

Virginia officials won't get as much time as they wanted to rebut a Navy study of moving an aircraft carrier and several surface ships to northern Florida.

The Navy has turned down a request by Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine to extend a public comment period on a proposed overhaul of Mayport Naval Station in Florida by 45 days. Instead, the Navy this week granted an additional 15 days, until May 27, for comments on its environmental impact statement.

Gordon Hickey, spokesman for the governor, said the extension will still allow the state to do more research into the study. "We'll take the 15 days," he said.

Federal, state and local leaders have formed a coalition to prevent Hampton Roads from losing Navy ships to Florida. The local congressional delegation also sent a letter to the Navy requesting an extension.

"The issue is extremely important to our region," said Travis Burk, a spokesman for Rep. Thelma Drake, R-Virginia Beach.

Frank Roberts, executive director of the Hampton Roads Military and Federal Facilities Alliance, said the state could use more time to hire experts to critique the report, which runs 1,200 pages with appendices. The Navy's evaluation has "some glaring inadequacies," Roberts said.

The report underestimates costs and fails to consider the full effects of moving ships, he said.

The chief of naval operations initiated the study in 2006 to consider Mayport's future. The base's lone aircraft carrier, the John F. Kennedy, was decommissioned in 2007. The Navy will begin decommissioning Mayport's frigate fleet in 2010, which eventually could leave the base with 11 ships.

The report proposes 13 alternatives for moving destroyers, cruisers, amphibious assault ships and a nuclear carrier to the Jacksonville-area base. The proposals range from leaving the base intact to spending nearly $500 million in new construction and dredging to accommodate a nuclear carrier by 2014.

The Navy has said the ships could come from any port, but Virginia officials believe Hampton Roads is the likely choice.

The final environmental impact statement is due in November. A record of decision is expected in December. The Navy's newest aircraft carrier, the George H.W. Bush, is under construction in Newport News and due to be delivered around the end of the year.

Louis Hansen, (757) 446-2322, louis.hansen@pilotonline.com